1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of electronic scrapbooking. More specifically, the invention relates to a single, software-based workflow and interactive on-line community for organizing, storing, creating, editing, and printing digital photographs, digital scrapbooking design kits and elements, and digital scrapbooking projects.
2. Background
Scrapbooking is an ages-old hobby that can be traced back to as late as the 15th century in England. It began as a method for preserving personal and family history in the form a scrapbook. It is called a “scrapbook” because various memorabilia were glued to blank pages in a book including photographs, letters, cards, recipes, artwork, news paper clippings, quotations, etc. The scrapbook albums are also often decorated with family artwork, family crests and or family seals. Many scrapbooks contain personal or family journals along with the various memorabilia. Older scrapbooks tend to have photos mounted with photo-mounting corners and perhaps notations of who was in photo or where and when the photo was taken. All of this done to preserve the personal or family history of the scrapbook artist.
With the advent of personal computers, scanners, desktop publishing, page layout programs, and advanced printing options, it is relatively easy to create professional-looking scrapbook layouts in digital form. Furthermore, the Internet allows scrap bookers to self-publish their work or easily share it with family and friends. Scrapbooks that exist completely in digital image form are referred to as “digital scrapbooks” or “computer scrapbooks.” While some people prefer the physicality of the actual artifacts they paste onto the pages of books, the digital scrapbooking hobby has grown in popularity in recent years. Some of the advantages include a greater diversity of materials, less environmental impact, cost savings, the ability to share finished pages more readily on the internet, and the use of image editing software to experiment with manipulating page elements in multiple ways without making permanent adjustments. A traditional scrapbook layout may employ a background paper with a torn edge. While a physical page can only be torn once and never restored, a digital paper can be torn and untorn with ease, allowing the scrapbooker to try out different looks without wasting supplies. Some web-based digital scrapbooks include a variety of wallpapers and backgrounds to help the users create a rich visual experience. Each paper, photo, or embellishment exists on its own layer in your document, and a user can reposition them at their discretion.
While there are a number of applications for editing and organizing digital images, adding themes or backgrounds, or doing page layout; there is not a “total” scrapbooking solution for the scrapbook artist. What is needed in a digital application that addresses all of the needs of a scrapbook artist, including organizing, storing and editing digital photographs; page layout; digital and physical inventory management; publishing; online collaboration and retail trade with other artists and backup storage.